Card game and method of play

ABSTRACT

A method of playing a card game based on the conventional game of Twenty-One and the conventional game of Poker. A player playing the game has the option of playing both poker and Twenty-One simultaneously and also has the option of participating in a bonus game for larger payouts. In the game, the face cards are revalued and the total value of the Poker hand may not exceed 21.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.10/701,389 filed Nov. 3, 2003, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 09/757,225 filed Jan. 5, 2001 and claims thebenefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/174,664 filed Jan. 6,2000, all of which are hereby incorporated by reference.

NOTICE REGARDING COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL

A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains materialwhich is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has noobjection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent documentor the patent disclosure as it appears in the public Patent Office fileor records but other reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Twenty-One is a card game commonly available in casinos. The object ofthe game is for a player to have a hand of cards with a value closer to21 than the value of the dealer's hand. If the value of the player'shand exceeds 21, however, the player loses (no matter what the value ofthe dealer's hand).

Twenty-One is typically played as follows: each card is accorded a valueequal to its face value, with the exception of aces (which have a valueof one or eleven, depending which is most useful to the holder of thecard), and the face cards (i.e. Jacks, Queens and Kings) which all havea value of ten. The player first makes a wager, and the dealer thentypically deals one card to the player. The dealer is then dealt a cardface up (a common variation is to deal the dealer two cards—one of whichis face down). The dealer then deals the player a second card.

The player may request additional cards (known as “requesting a hit”) toincrease the value of the player's hand. If the value of the player'shand is greater than 21, the player loses, or “busts”. The player maycease taking cards, or “stand”, when the player has a hand with a valueof 21 or less. If the player busts, the wager is lost (it does notmatter if the dealer also busts).

After the player has busted or elected to stand, the dealer stands ortakes hits based on pre-established rules. Typically, the dealer musttake a hit if the value of the dealer's hand is less than 17, or muststand if the value of the hand is 17 or greater. Several variationsexist, including those based on different values of the dealer's hand orwhether or not the dealer's hand includes an ace.

After the value of the dealer's hand is been established, the value ofthe dealer's hand is compared to that of the player's. If the player hasbusted, the player loses. If the player has not busted and the dealerhas, the player wins. The player is then paid a value based onpre-determined odds in relation to its wager (typically, but notnecessarily, the amount paid to the player is equal to the amountwagered). If neither the player nor the dealer has busted, the handhaving the highest value wins. If the value of the player's hand and thevalue of the dealer's hand is the same, known as a “push”, there is nowinner.

A feature commonly present in Twenty-One is “Doubling Down.” If theplayer's first two cards have a total value of 10 or 11, the player hasthe option of “doubling down”. If the player elects to double down he orshe turns both cards face-up and makes a second wager equal to theamount of the initial wager. The dealer then deals the player anadditional card and the resulting three-card hand is the final value ofthe player's hand. Usually, the player may double down only if the firsttwo cards have a total value of 10 or 11. Common variations includeallowing the player to double down on hands with a total value of 9, 10or 11; only on 11; or on any two cards, and other variations arecertainly possible.

Another common variation in Twenty-One is called “Splitting Pairs.” Ifthe player's first two cards are a pair, the player may “split” suchcards into two separate hands. The player's original wager is applied toone of the hands and an additional wager (equal to the amount of theinitial wager) is made for the second hand. The player is then dealt anew second card for each hand. Each of the split hands is playedseparately and the player proceeds to play each hand according to thestandard rules of Twenty-One. Commonly, if a player splits a pair ofAces, the player is dealt only one card for each hand. In such a case,if the new second card dealt to the player is another Ace, typically theplayer may again split the Aces and proceed to play each hand accordingto the standard rules of Twenty-One.

“Splitting Pairs” may be combined with “Doubling Down” so that theplayer may double down on either or both of its split hands if it iseligible to do so. In some versions of the standard game of Twenty-One,a player may also split its hand if both of the initial cards dealt areten count cards (i.e. Tens, Jacks, Queens or Kings).

A further common variation is “Insurance” in which the player may makean additional “insurance” wager if the dealer's visible card is an Ace.The insurance wager may be made after the player is dealt his or herfirst two cards and the dealer reveals an Ace but before any additionalcards are dealt. Insurance allows the player to wager one-half of theamount of his or her original wager as insurance against the dealerhaving a Blackjack (i.e. a two-card hand having a value of 21, forexample, an Ace and a 10 count card such as a King, Queen, Jack or Ten).If the dealer has a Blackjack, the player loses its original wager butwins two-to-one odds on the insurance wager. A dealer's Blackjack endsthe round and the player loses except if he or she also has a Blackjack(in which case there is a “push”). If the player makes an insurancewager and the dealer does not have a Blackjack, the player loses theinsurance wager and the round proceeds according to the standard rulesof Twenty-One.

In yet another variation of Twenty-One, when the dealer initiallyreceives two cards, the dealer shows both of its cards face-up beforethe player requests a hit. This improves the player's odds of winning sothe payout odds are modified to maintain the house's advantage.

The game of Twenty-one as described herein (including the variationsdescribed above), will be referred to in this document as the“conventional game of Twenty-One”. The conventional game of Twenty-Oneincorporates all of the common variations of Twenty-One described aboveand others known to those skilled in the art (for example instead of amaximum value of 21, the maximum value could be 23 or another differentnumber).

A disadvantage of the conventional game of Twenty-One is that there isno opportunity for the player to win a large amount because the standardpayout odds are not high. In other words, the conventional game ofTwenty-One only allows the player to win a small amount with eachwinning hand, therefore, the player must play (and win) many hands inorder to win a larger amount.

Poker is another well-established card game. In a typical game of Pokeras played in casinos and other gaming establishments, the player makesan initial wager and is dealt a number of cards. A second round follows,in which the player exchanges some, none or all of the cards currentlyheld for new cards, or in some variations, draw new cards to add to hishand in an attempt to obtain the highest ranking hand. The player wins(or loses) an amount based on the odds of obtaining a certain hand (forexample a hand with a four of a kind pays the player more than a handwith a full house). This standard Poker game commonly found in casinoswill be referred to herein as “draw poker”. The payouts vary widelydepending on the particulars of the game, but are usually ranked fromgreatest payout to smallest as: Royal Flush, Straight Flush, Four of aKind, Full House, Flush, Straight, Three of a Kind, Two Pair and asingle Pair.

There are many variations of the game of Poker commonly found incasinos. These include “stud” games wherein additional cards are givento the player (or revealed during the play of the hand). Other commonvariations are to vary the number of cards given to a player (3, 5 or 7are the most common). The rules about wild cards (their presence orabsence, and sometimes they can only be used in particular situations)vary. Some common names given to particularly popular variations are“Pai Gow Poker” and “Caribbean Stud Poker”.

The game of Poker, including draw poker and the common variationsdescribed above, will be referred to herein as the “conventional game ofPoker”.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a method of playing a card game, and moreparticularly, a method of playing a card game based on both the cardgame known as Twenty-One (also called Blackjack) and the card game knownas Poker, and that offers a bonus wager.

DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART

There have been several variations to the conventional game ofTwenty-One and the conventional game of Poker to provide a game that ismore fun for the players and that allows for larger prizes to be won.For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,549,300 to Saunders discloses a method ofplaying Twenty-One wherein wild cards jokers) are used and the facecards and the Aces are removed. The wild cards function as Aces in theconventional game of Twenty-One. Such a game does not offer playerslarger payouts and greater odds than found in the conventional game ofTwenty-One.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,615,888 to Lofink et al. discloses a method of playing aSpanish Twenty-One card game wherein the “Tens” are removed from thedeck, and a bonus is paid to the player if the player's first two cardsare a Blackjack. The bonus payout is limited, and is based on cardcombinations in the player's hand (which cannot exceed a value of 21).

U.S. Pat. No. 5,678,821 to Hedman discloses a method of playing acombination Poker-like and Twenty-One-like wagering card game whereineach player receives five cards to form two Twenty-One hands and asingle poker hand. A complex system is employed to determine a winner.The disclosed method provides minimal choice for players as there islittle opportunity for decision making with respect to the cards held.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,713,574 to Hughes discloses a card game method combiningelements of Twenty-One and Poker in which each player gets three cards(and may discard one for a new card) to form a Poker or Twenty-One hand.As the player can hold no more than three cards, many proper Poker hands(e.g. full house and two pair, which requires more than five cards)cannot be formed by the player's hand.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,012,719 to Webb discloses a method of playing Twenty-Oneand three card Poker. If the player makes a poker wager prior toplaying, a game of three card Poker is played before a game of Blackjackis played. The player has no decision making with respect to the Pokerhand, and given the three card hand, large payouts are not possible asmany proper Poker hands cannot be created.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a modified method of play of theconventional game of Twenty-One by combining it with the conventionalgame of Poker and providing liberal payouts.

An object of the present invention is to provide a method of playing atcard game, which combines elements of the conventional games ofTwenty-One and Poker, that offers liberal payouts while maintaining aspecified house advantage.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a method ofplaying a card game which combines elements of the conventional games ofTwenty-One and Poker, and that is unfavorable to professional cardplayers using card counting methods to tip the advantage of the game intheir favor.

The method of playing a card game comprises the steps of providing astandard deck of playing cards and a wild card; providing a player anoption to make a wager to play Twenty-One or Poker or both; dealing twocards from the deck of playing cards to the player and dealing one cardto a dealer; and playing the conventional game of Twenty-One or playingthe conventional game of Poker with a modification to the conventionalgame of Poker that the total value of the Poker hand may not exceed 21.The face cards are revalued for the purposes of the conventional game ofTwenty-One (and for determining the value of the Poker hand) such thatthe Jacks are valued as 2, the Queens are valued as 3, and the Kings arevalued as 4. A wild card (a Joker) is included in the deck. If theplayer wins, the player is paid a value based on pre-determined odds inrelation to the player's initial wager.

The conventional game of Twenty-One is modified as follows:

(a) the player may receive a maximum of six cards;

(b) the player may not split pairs;

(c) the player may not make an insurance wager;

(d) the player may double down on any hand of two to five cards andreceive one additional card;

(e) the dealer must hit if the value of the dealer's hand is less than18 (soft or hard); and

(f) the dealer must stand if the value of the dealer's hand is 18 (softor hard) or greater.

The predetermined odds for the modified game of Twenty-One are asfollows: Pre-determined Player's Winning Hand Odds Blackjack 3-to-1(which requires a ten and an ace and pays even if the dealer also has aBlackjack) Five or six cards having a total value 2-to 1 of 21(excluding the Joker) Higher value than dealer's hand 1-to-1

The conventional game of Poker is further modified such that the playermay draw as many cards as the player requests (without exceeding thevalue of 21), and the Joker is treated as a wild card. The predeterminedodds for the modified game of Poker are as follows: Winning PokerCombination Pre-determined Odds Royal Flush plus Joker 1000-to-1   Fiveof a Kind (including Joker) 200-to-1  Royal Flush 100-to-1  StraightFlush 50-to-1  Four of a Kind 20-to-1  Full House 11-to-1  Flush 9-to-1Straight 6-to-1 Three of a Kind 4-to-1 Two Pair 3-to-1 A Pair of 9s or10s 2-to-1 A Pair of Aces to 8s or a pair of 1-to-1 Jacks, Queens, orKings

The method of playing a card game also provides the player a furtheroption to wager on playing a Bonus Game. The rules of the Bonus Game aresubstantially the same as the rules of the modified game of Poker withthe exception that the pre-determined odds of such Bonus game are higherthan the modified game of Poker. The pre-determined odds for the BonusGame are as follows: Winning Poker Combination Pre-determined Odds RoyalFlush plus Joker 1,000,000-to-1    Five of a Kind (including Joker)1000-to-1  Royal Flush 500-to-1  Straight Flush 200-to-1  Four of a Kind50-to-1 Full House 20-to-1 Flush 20-to-1 Straight 10-to-1 Three of aKind  5-to-1 Two Pair  4-to-1 A Pair of 9s or 10s  3-to-1 A Pair of Acesto 8s or a pair of — Jacks, Queens, or Kings

The player may wager on playing the Bonus Game and the modified game ofTwenty-One in which case the player is paid a value in relation to itswager based on the pre-determined odds set out above for both themodified game of Twenty-One and the Bonus Game.

The player may also wager on playing the Bonus Game and modified game ofPoker in which case the player is paid a value in relation to its wagerbased on the pre-determined odds set out above for both modified game ofPoker and the Bonus Game.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

Further objects, features and advantages of the present invention willbecome more readily apparent to those skilled in the art from thefollowing description of the invention when taken in conjunction withthe accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a top view of a preferred layout of a table for playing thecard game according to the invention;

FIG. 2 is a flow chart illustrating the method of playing the modifiedgame of Twenty-One according to the invention;

FIG. 3 is a flow chart illustrating the method of playing the modifiedgame of Poker according to the invention;

FIG. 4 is a flow chart illustrating the method of playing the modifiedgame of Twenty-One and the Bonus game according to the invention; and

FIG. 5 is a flow chart illustrating the method of playing the modifiedgame of Poker and the Bonus game according to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Throughout this document, the term “face cards” means the Jacks, Queens,and Kings in a deck of playing cards and the term “Joker” means any cardmarked to differentiate itself from the other cards in a deck of playingcards. The term “Blackjack” means a two card hand having a total valueof 21 (i.e. in the preferred embodiment, an Ace and a ten). The term“hard” means the total value of a hand achieved by adding the numericvalues of the cards in the hand (i.e. an Ace is valued as 1). The term“soft” means the total value of a hand achieved by adding the numericvalues of the cards in the hand except for an Ace, which is valued as11.

In a preferred embodiment, the card game uses a standard, deck ofplaying cards comprising the Aces through the Tens, the face cards, anda Joker. The face cards are preferably revalued as follows: Jacks(Clubs, Diamonds, Hearts and Spades) count as two; Queens (Clubs,Diamonds, Hearts and Spades) count as three; and Kings (Clubs, Diamonds,Hearts and Spades) count as four. These revaluations are preferablyindicated on a modified deck of cards but can otherwise be indicated(for example by nearby signage). In an alternative embodiment of theinvention the face cards can be revalued with values between two tonine. The Joker is a wild card and has no value. In further alternativeembodiments, more than one Joker may be present in the deck.

Preferably, a 53 card deck (standard deck and joker) is used. The deckis preferably shuffled by an automatic single deck card shuffler, and ishand dealt by the dealer. As seen in FIG. 1, the dealer is typicallylocated at position 20 of card table 1. The deck may shuffled manuallyor by any method known in the art. More than one deck can be used (e.g.six such decks), but typically, one deck is used to play the card game.

In a preferred embodiment, the method of playing a card game provides aplayer with the option of wagering on playing the game of Twenty-One,Poker, both Twenty-One and Poker, or the Bonus game in conjunction withTwenty-One and/or Poker. In alternative embodiments the Bonus Game maybe played independently of Twenty-One or Poker. As seen in FIG. 1,typically, no more than seven players located at position 25 of cardtable 1 may participate in the same game and the players are not bepermitted to share a betting position. Preferably, no player ispermitted to wager on another player's hand (i.e. no back betting on anygame). These rules vary from setting to setting and are usuallydependent on the environment the game is played in (for instance, theparticular casino).

The player must make a wager before playing any game. Preferably, theplayer places one or more wagers on the designated wager positions 5,10, and 15 on card table 1, as seen in FIG. 1. Typically, wager position5 is to play the game of Twenty-One, wager position 10 is to play thegame of Poker, and wager position 15 is to play the Bonus game. Afterthe dealer verifies that all wagers are placed within the designatedwager positions 5, 10, and/or 15, the dealer announces that wagering iscomplete and no alterations to the wager may be made. The deck is thenshuffled and the dealer deals one card to each player, one to himself,and an additional card to each player.

Twenty-One

The object of the game of Twenty-One is for the player to achieve ahigher total value in one hand than the dealer without exceeding a valueof 21. As seen in FIG. 2, if the player makes a wager to play the gameof Twenty-one (step 30), in the preferred embodiment of the invention,the rules of the conventional game of Twenty-One are modified asfollows:

-   -   A 53 card playing deck is used comprising the Aces through the        Kings and a Joker;    -   The face cards are revalued such that the Jacks are valued as 2,        the Queens are valued as 3, and the Kings are valued as 4;    -   The Joker is a wild card and has no value for the game of        Twenty-One;    -   The player receives two cards from the dealer, preferably face        up. Alternatively one or both cards may be face down The dealer        receives one card face up. If the dealer's first card is a        Joker, the dealer must draw another card (step 35);    -   After receiving the initial two cards, the player may “hit” to        receive an additional card. The player may receive a maximum of        six cards without exceeding the total value of 21 (step 40);    -   The player may “stand” and not receive any further cards at the        player's request (step 40);    -   The player may double down on any two to five cards by making a        second wager equal to the initial wager (step 45). The player        will receive only one card to complete the hand. If the dealer        has a Blackjack, the player will only lose the initial wager. If        the player loses otherwise, both bets are lost;    -   Surrender is not allowed;    -   Splitting pairs is not allowed;    -   Insurance is not allowed;    -   Where a “bust” hand occurs the player's wager and cards are        immediately picked up by the dealer (step 50); and    -   The dealer must take a hit if the value of the dealer's hand is        less than 18 (soft or hard), or the dealer must stand if the        value is 18 or greater (soft or hard) (step 55). Soft 18 is when        the dealer has an Ace (counted as eleven) and other cards        totaling seven. Hard 18 is when the value of the cards total 18.        The player wins the game of Twenty-One if:

(1) The player has a Blackjack (step 60);

(2) The player's hand has a higher total value than the dealer's handwithout the player's hand exceeding a value of 21 (step 65); or

(3) The player's hand has a total value of 21 or less with the dealer'shand exceeding a value of 21 (step 70).

The pre-determined odds for the modified game of Twenty-One arepreferably as follows: Pre-determined Player's Winning Hand OddsBlackjack Three-to-one Five or six cards having a total value Two-to oneof 21 (excluding the Joker) Higher value than dealer's hand One-to-one

If the player and the dealer have hands with the same value, and theplayer's hand does not have five of six cards with a value of 21, then apush occurs and the money wagered by the player is returned.

Poker

The object of the Poker game is to achieve the best possible winningpoker combination in a hand without the hand exceeding a total value ofthe 21. As seen in FIG. 3, if the player makes a wager to play Poker(step 75), the rules of playing the conventional game of Poker aremodified as follows:

(i) The player wagers against a pay table (described below);

(ii) A 53 card playing deck is used comprising the Aces through theKings and a Joker;

(iii) The face cards are revalued (only for the purposes of the handvalue not exceeding 21, and not for card combinations) such that theJacks are valued as two, the Queens are valued as three, and the Kingsare valued as four (e.g. a jack and a two do not make up a pair).

(iv) The face cards retain their rank as in the conventional game ofPoker.

(v) Only the highest winning Poker combination (described below) in ahand is paid;

(vii) Players can draw up to six cards or more so long as the totalvalue of the cards does not exceed 21 (step 80). Such cards can be usedto make the best five card winning Poker combination in a hand;

(viii) The Joker is wild and can be used to complete the player's Pokerhand to give the player the best winning Poker combination (step 85);

(ix) The player must have at least five cards for the following winningPoker combinations: Full House, Straight, Flush, Straight Flush, andRoyal Flush.

The player must have six cards for the Royal Flush plus Joker winningPoker combination.

The player wins the game of Poker if the player's hand is one of thefollowing winning Poker combinations (step 90):

(1) Royal Flush plus Joker;

(2) Five of a Kind (including Joker);

(3) Royal Flush;

(4) Straight Flush;

(5) Four of a Kind;

(6) Full House;

(7) Flush;

(8) Straight;

(9) Three of a Kind;

(10) Two Pair;

(11) A Pair of 9s or 10s; or

(12) A Pair of Aces, 2s to 8s or Jacks, Queens or Kings.

The pay table for the game of Poker setting out the pre-determined oddsis as follows: Winning Poker Combination Pre-determined Odds Royal Flushplus Joker 1000-to-1   Five of a Kind (including Joker) 200-to-1  RoyalFlush 100-to-1  Straight Flush 50-to-1  Four of a Kind 20-to-1  FullHouse 11-to-1  Flush 9-to-1 Straight 6-to-1 Three of a Kind 4-to-1 TwoPair 3-to-1 A Pair of 9s or 10s 2-to-1 A Pair of Aces, 2s to 8s orJacks, 1-to-1 Queens, or Kings

If the player does not have one of these winning hands or the player'shand exceeds a value of 21, the player loses. As is known in the art,other payout tables can also be used.

Bonus Game

The object of the Bonus Game is to achieve bonus payouts if the player'shand is one of the winning Poker combinations described above. In apreferred embodiment, if the player achieves one of such combinations,the player receives the associated bonus payout on the bonus wager basedon pre-determined odds as set out in the following Bonus Game pay table:Winning Poker Combination Pre-determined Odds A Royal Flush plus Joker1,000,000-to-1    Five of a Kind (including 1000-to-1  Joker) RoyalFlush 500-to-1  Straight Flush 200-to-1  Four of a Kind 50-to-1 FullHouse 20-to-1 Flush 20-to-1 Straight 10-to-1 Three of a Kind  5-to-1 TwoPair  4-to-1 A Pair of 9s or 10s  3-to-1 A Pair of Aces, 2s to 8s, or —Jacks, Queens or Kings

To win the bonus bet, the player's hand must also be a successful Pokerhand (e.g. have a hand value of 21 or less).

A player who has placed a wager on the Bonus Game and receives a handwhich qualifies for the bonus payout, shall win irrespective of whetherthe dealer's hand wins. Preferably, the winner of the Bonus Game is paidout according to the above Bonus Game pay table. In alternativeembodiments of the invention, the winner of the Bonus Game may also bepaid out according to any of the following pre-determined odds set outin the table below: Winning Pre- Pre- Pre- Pre- Poker determineddetermined determined determined Combination Odds B Odds C Odds D Odds ERoyal Flush 100,000-to-1    50,000-to-1    20,000-to-1    10,000-to-1   plus Joker Five of a Kind 1000-to-1  1000-to-1  1000-to-1  1000-to-1 (including Joker) Royal Flush 500-to-1  500-to-1  500-to-1  500-to-1 Straight Flush 100-to-1  100-to-1  100-to-1  100-to-1  Four of a Kind50-to-1 50-to-1 50-to-1 50-to-1 Full House 25-to-1 25-to-1 25-to-125-to-1 Flush 25-to-1 25-to-1 25-to-1 25-to-1 Straight 15-to-1 15-to-115-to-1 15-to-1 Three of a  5-to-1  5-to-1  5-to-1  5-to-1 Kind Two Pair 4-to-1  4-to-1  4-to-1  4-to-1 A Pair of 9s or  3-to-1  3-to-1  3-to-1 3-to-1 10s Pair Aces, 2s — — — — to 8s, or Jacks, Queens, or Kings

Other payout combinations may be used for different embodiments of theinvention.

Bonus Game and Twenty-One

As seen in FIG. 4, if the player wagers on the game of Twenty-One; andthe Bonus Game (step 95) and if the player's hand is both a winning handin Twenty-One (step 100) and includes one of the winning Pokercombinations (step 105), then in addition to winning the amount set outin the Twenty-One pay table described above (step 110), the player alsowins the amount set out in the Bonus Game pay table (step 115).Preferably, the player is paid out according to Pre-determined Odds A,as set out in the first Bonus Game pay table above. However, the playermay also be paid out according to Predetermined Odds B, C, D, E, or F asset out in the second Bonus Game pay table as selected by the operatorof the game.

Bonus Game and Poker

As seen in FIG. 5, if the player wagers on the game of Poker and theBonus Game (step 120) and the player's hand is one of the winning Pokercombinations (step 125), in addition to winning the amount set out inthe Poker pay table described above (step 130), the player also wins theamount set out in the Bonus Game pay table (step 135). Preferably, theplayer is paid out according to Pre-determined Odds A, as set out in thefirst Bonus Game pay table above. However, the player may also be paidout according to Predetermined Odds B, C, D, E, or F as set out in thesecond Bonus Game pay table.

While the invention has been illustrated with respect to severalspecific embodiments thereof, these embodiments should be considered asillustrative rather than limiting. Various modifications and additionsmay be made and will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

The method of the present invention is not limited to live table gameversions. Any of the methods described above can be applied to a cardgame that is programmed to operate on an electronic video gaming machinethat displays the cards to a player and the player effects the play ofthe game using control buttons or the like. Each of the featuresdiscussed above can be easily included in any electronic and Internetversion of the card game and the claims of the present invention areintended to include both the live table game version, the electronicvideo gaming machine version, and Internet gaming version of the methodof the present invention.

Accordingly, the invention should not be limited by the foregoingdescription, but rather should be defined only by the following claims.

1. A method of playing a card game comprising the steps of: a. Providinga deck of playing cards comprising: i. a standard deck of playing cardswherein the Jacks, Queens, and Kings have been revalued; and ii. a wildcard; b. providing a player with an option to wager on playingTwenty-One or Poker or both; c. means for said wager to wager to playTwenty-One and Poker; d. dealing two cards from said deck to said playerand dealing a card from said deck to a dealer; and e. means for saidplayer to play the conventional game of Twenty-One and play theconvention game of Poker, with a modification that the total value of aPoker hand may not exceed
 21. f. providing a pay out to said player ifsaid player opted to wager on playing Twenty-One and said player winssaid conventional game of Twenty-One, or said player opted to wager onplaying Poker and said player wins said conventional game of Poker andthe total value of said Poker hand does not exceed
 21. 2. The method ofclaim 1 wherein said Jacks are revalued as 2, said Queens are revaluedas 3, and said Kings are revalued as 4 and said wild card is a Joker. 3.The method of claim 2 further wherein when providing said pay out tosaid player, said pay out is based on pre-determined odds in relation tosaid wager.
 4. The method of claim 3 wherein said deck includes 53cards.
 5. The method of claim 4 where the conventional game ofTwenty-One is modified such that said player may not make an insurancewager and may not split pairs.
 6. The method of claim 5 wherein theconventional game of Twenty-One is modified such that said player maydouble down on any two to five cards.
 7. The method of claim 6 whereinthe conventional game of Twenty-One is modified such that said dealermust hit if the value of said dealer's hand is less than soft or hard18.
 8. The method of claim 7 wherein the conventional game of Twenty-Oneis modified such that said dealer must stand if the value of saiddealer's hand is soft or hard 18 or greater.
 9. The method of claim 8wherein the conventional game of Twenty-One is modified such that saidplayer may receive a maximum of six cards.
 10. The method of claim 9wherein said pre-determined odds for Twenty-One are as follows: (a)paying said player three-to-one odds if said player has a Blackjack,even if said dealer also has a Blackjack; (b) paying said playertwo-to-one odds if said player has a hand comprising five or six cards,excluding said Joker, having a total value of 21; and (c) paying saidplayer one-to-one odds if said player has a hand having a higher valuethan said dealer.
 11. The method of claim 10 wherein the conventionalgame of Poker is further modified such that said player may draw as manycards as said player requests.
 12. The method of claim 11 wherein theconventional game of Poker is further modified such that said Joker is awild card.
 13. The method of claim 12 wherein said pre-determined oddsfor Poker are as follows: Winning Poker Combination Pre-determined OddsRoyal Flush plus Joker 1000-to-1   Five of a Kind (including Joker)200-to-1  Royal Flush 100-to-1  Straight Flush 50-to-1  Four of a Kind20-to-1  Full House 11-to-1  Flush 9-to-1 Straight 6-to-1 Three of aKind 4-to-1 Two Pair 3-to-1 A Pair of 9s or 10s 2-to-1 A Pair Aces to 8sor a pair of 1-to-1 Jacks, Queens, or Kings


14. The method of claim 1 further comprising an option for said playerto wager on playing a Bonus Game wherein the rules of said Bonus Game issubstantially the same as the rules of Poker with the exception thatsaid pre-determined odds for said Bonus game are higher than that ofPoker.
 15. The method of claim 14 wherein said pre-determined odds forsaid Bonus Game are as follows: Winning Poker Combination Pre-determinedOdds Royal Flush plus Joker 1,000,000-to-1    Five of a Kind (includingJoker) 1000-to-1  Royal Flush 500-to-1e Straight Flush 200-to-1  Four ofa Kind 50-to-1 Full House 20-to-1 Flush 20-to-1 Straight 10-to-1 Threeof a Kind  5-to-1 Two Pair  4-to-1 A Pair of 9s or 10s  3-to-1 A Pair ofAces to 8s or a pair of — Jacks, Queens, or Kings


16. The method of claim 15 further comprising an option to wager onplaying said Bonus Game and Twenty-One.
 17. The method of claim 16wherein said player is paid a value based on said pre-determined odds inrelation to said wager for said Bonus Game of claim 15 and a value basedon said pre-determined odds in relation to said wager for Twenty-One ofclaim 10 if said player wins.
 18. The method of claim 15 furthercomprising an option for said player to wager on playing said Bonus Gameand Poker.
 19. The method of claim 18 wherein said player is paid avalue based on said pre-determined odds in relation to said wager forsaid Bonus Game of claim 15 and a value based on said pre-determinedodds in relation to said wager for Poker of claim 13 if said playerwins.
 20. The method of claim 15 further comprising an option to wageron playing said Bonus Game, Poker, and Twenty-One wherein said player ispaid a value based-on said pre-determined odds in relation to said wagerfor said Bonus Game of claim 15, a value based on said pre-determinedodds in relation to said wager for Poker of claim 13, and a value basedon said pre-determined odds in relation to said wager for Twenty-One ofclaim 10 if said player wins.